


Tea Time before the Apocalypse

by allislaughter



Series: Wordplay: So Love Us Till Sunset [15]
Category: Fallout (Video Games), Fallout 4
Genre: Gen, POV Third Person, Pre-War, Present Tense, Tea, Trans Male Character
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-14
Updated: 2020-12-14
Packaged: 2021-03-10 17:55:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 441
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28071303
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/allislaughter/pseuds/allislaughter
Summary: Before Rig woke up in the wastelands and stole his roommate's name, he was a man named Apollo just waiting for said roommate to come home, preparing himself a cup of tea on a sure to be uneventful October day.
Series: Wordplay: So Love Us Till Sunset [15]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1901830
Comments: 2
Kudos: 4





	Tea Time before the Apocalypse

Making tea isn’t exactly a science. Heat up some water, throw in some leaves, let it sit for a while, and you get something akin to tea. A  _ good _ cup of tea requires more knowledge. The right leaves, the right temperature of water, the right amount of time to let it sit...

Apollo has the news on in the other room. The neighbors have been asking around about Rig, but Apollo doesn’t have many answers for them. They let him know “maybe you should read the news”, but Apollo can’t read.

...Okay, he can read, but the text is tiny and he prefers the comics anyway. So the television is his next best bet, while the radio plays music in the kitchen.

It’s sunny, it’s blue, and it’s a pleasant October day. Fall is the best time of year for the hot tea Apollo drinks year round, and today is no different.

The kettle whistles as it comes to a boil, and Apollo pours the water into his mug. He sets the timer, leans against the counter, and waits.

This is the last of his good tea, before he has to dip into the cheap tea bags that Rig bought for him the one time Rig did the grocery shopping instead of him when he was sick. Apollo’s not a fan of that brand, but the one he likes is just a bit more expensive than Rig wants to spend money on. For special occasions, however... Every time Apollo sells a poem and gets money to buy some actually good tea...

He closes his eyes and listens to the timer behind him. He’s done this so many times for so many years. He can estimate the right amount of time to steep a perfect cup of tea even without the timer, though hearing the  _ ding! _ to confirm he has it right always makes him a little—

“—nuclear detonations in New York and Pennsylvania—”

“What?” Apollo asks, looking up as the radio and the TV play the same announcement. His eyes widen at the sound of sirens in the distance drowning out everything else...

He moves without thinking. Grabs his and Rig’s bags and is out the door, running past his neighbors, some of whom are running as well, some of whom are comforting each other before who-knows-what-will-happen happens. Apollo heads straight for the railroad tracks, a song on his breath, fear in his heart, and the lucid rationale of what to do taking over as he tries to get to safety in time.

Back in his home, a timer dings, and a cup of tea is left to oversteep, long forgotten.


End file.
